Collins hails from an area where the early ancestors were referred to as the “people of the mountains”, so when it comes to celebrated New Zealand sporting prowess, it is not surprising that surf lifesaving doesn’t spring to top of mind.

But Kiwis have been world leaders in this community sport, triumphing over their more fancied Aussie rivals in three of the past four International Lifesaving Championships. Now a staple in the New Zealand Surf lifesaving team he continues the path to become one of the greatest ironmen to come out of New Zealand.

In his debut season in the 2020/21 Nutri-Grain series, Collins announced his arrival in no uncertain terms, holding his own in a top field and beating many seasoned veterans to finish third place overall being one of the youngest to podium in a debut series for 2 decades. He capped off an unstoppable 2021 taking out the Under 19 Australian Ironman title becoming the first international athlete to ever win an ironman title at the Australian Surf Lifesaving championships. Since then he has continued his success and become a regular podium getter in all forms of racing in surf lifesaving from the Professional Ironman Series to the Coolangatta gold. His next challenge is to beat one of his main idols growing up and a man gaining the respect to go down as the Greatest of All Time – Ali Day.

Collins’ success has come with sacrifices, finishing his high schooling life early and moving to the Gold Coast by himself at the age of 17. Leaving behind his friends and family in the pursuit of a dream and a goal. To mix it with the best the sport has to offer. He has lived by the ethos of learning in the deep end and jumps headfirst into any opportunity to better himself as both an athlete and a human

Not satisfied just to challenge himself in the highly competitive surf arena, Collins continued his studies at Bond university graduating with a Bachelor of Commerce majoring in finance and accounting. Now when time permits it between the countless hours of training he works as an accountant at Simmons Partnership on the Gold Coast, continuing to learn and grow for a life after sport.